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Al Gore teaches us some nice AAPL stock tricks

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated March 18, 2016

I also have another headline: Al Gore profits from Apple losses. Regardless of where you stand, the debate over whether Apple's iPhone is facing declining demand has now spread from simply a question of iOS versus Android. It's about Benjamins, who wins and who loses. Facing the 'threat' of Apple share value rebounding when its quarterly sales numbers are released next Wednesday, investors are hoping the company's stock remains low. Among them: former U.S. Vice President and Apple board member Al Gore.

Gore last week exercised options to buy 59,000 shares of Apple stock for only $7.475 per share. Because of the low option price versus the actual stock price of $495.2, he was able to buy Apple stock worth more than $29 million for just $441,000...

Apple to open R&D facility in Shanghai this summer

Cody Lee ∙ January 18, 2013

Earlier this week, we passed along a report claiming that Apple was looking to open up a new research and development center in Beijing. The news made sense, considering that on Tim Cook's recent visit to China, he was seen talking with high level government officials.

But according to a new report, which cites people familiar with the project, the R&D facility is actually going up in Shanghai. The campus, which Apple is expected to announce later this year, will feature three 6-story buildings, with over 100,000 square feet of space...

Cellular iPads hit China: iPad mini already on a 2-week backlog

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 18, 2013

Amid all the negativity surrounding speculation of weaker than expected demand for the iPhone 5 (and now the full-size iPad) comes a glimpse of hope as buyers in China seem to be picking up their cellular iPads at a rapid clip. In fact, iPads are seeing shipping delays on the launch day in this massive market.

As promised, on Friday cellular versions of the full-size 9.7-inch iPad and 7.9-inch iPad mini went on sale in China. Immediately following the launch, however, Apple's online store in China is quoting a two-week delay for new online orders for both the Wi-Fi-only and cellular versions of the mini tablet...

Sharp said to be cutting production of 9.7-inch iPad screens

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Reuters has issued a report this morning claiming that Sharp is cutting down production on iPad screens. The outlet cites two industry sources, who say the corp. has nearly halted manufacturing of 9.7-inch screens for the tablet at its Kameyama plant in Japan.

It's not clear how much of the slowdown is due to seasonal changes in demand, or cannibalization, thanks to a rising consumer interest in Apple's iPad mini. But regardless, this is still the second report of the Cupertino company cutting part orders this week...

Tim Cook will be questioned in anti-poaching case

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 18, 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook will be questioned on February 20 alongside Google chairman Eric Schmidt, former Intel boss Paul Otellini and other top ranking officials of Silicon Valley companies in regard to allegations that these tech giants illegally instituted anti-poaching measures for financial gains.

U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh ordered Cook to be questioned by plaintiff attorneys for four hours. Five former employees of Apple, Google, Intel and others filed a civil suit alleging their former employers conspired to eliminate competition for each other's employees...

Google+ iOS apps land in 48 new countries and territories

Cody Lee ∙ Updated August 26, 2017

Google's social network may have gotten off to a rocky start, but through perseverance and a string of handsome mobile app updates, it's managed to turn the service into a hit. As of last month, it had more than 500 million users, with 235 million being active.

And that number could see a small bump this weekend, as the search giant just announced that it has launched its two iOS Google+ apps in 48 new countries and territories this week, including Barbados and the Ukraine. We've got the full list after the fold...

Apple rolls out new ‘Read Them Here First’ section in Newsstand

Cody Lee ∙ January 17, 2013

Today has actually been a pretty big day for Newsstand. Earlier we learned that long-time holdout Rolling Stone Magazine finally landed on the iPad. And this afternoon, Apple rolled out a new section to the store.

It's called 'Read Them Here First,' and it's essentially a list of magazines that are now available to subscribers days before they come to print, or other digital platforms. And the first featured publisher is Hearst...

iOS 7 Quick Settings concept for the iPhone 5

Mike Schnier ∙ January 17, 2013

Remember the iOS concept video we saw earlier this week from André Luis Moreira? It turns out that Moreira had just posted an updated version of the concept on The Verge's forums. The updated concept is similar to what we've already seen, but features essential refinements to the original design, in addition to being resized to fit the iPhone 5's 4-inch screen.

Read on to see what's new, and what has changed in Moreira's new concept video...

Analyst: remember Steve – Apple’s best days lie ahead

Ed Sutherland ∙ January 17, 2013

A Wall Street analyst Wednesday gave investors a pep talk, invoking the words of the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs to point out the iPhone maker is hardly ready to head for the exit. Instead, Topeka Capital Market analyst Brian White issued a record target price for a stock battered by negative headlines.

"The negative sentiment around the stock has reached epic levels that we haven't seen in recent memory and yet we believe [Apple's] product portfolio has never been stronger", White said in an investment note. He also quoted Jobs in response to naysayers who recently came out of the woodwork spelling doom for Apple...

Finish for iPhone, a new task manager for procrastinators

Cody Lee ∙ January 17, 2013

When it comes to getting stuff done — either around the house, or running errands — I'm one of the biggest procrastinators I know. I don't mean to be. I've tried Clear, Wunderlist and other to-do list apps. And they're all filled with long-overdue tasks.

So you can imagine my intrigue when I heard about the new Finish app, which bills itself as a timeframe-focused todo list that will help you "overcome the clutches of procrastination." And since everyone seems to be talking about it, I had to try it out...

Instagram says it has 90M monthly active users, releases other stats

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 17, 2013

Facebook-owned photo sharing service Instagram today for the first time revealed some hard numbers on its performance and user base. Instagram has passed 90 million monthly active users, which is a huge number for any casual photo sharing service, no matter how you look at it. The company also confirmed that it is serving 40 million photographs each day, averaging to a little more than two photos per user shared each day. Wondering about how many likes and comments people post each day?

The iPad is becoming ad industry’s darling

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Here's one of those news stories that only confirm what we already suspected: Advertisers are in love with the iPad. Not only is the iPad preferred over its Android equivalents, but also the iPhone.

Users of the iPad are more liable to click on an ad than ads displayed on a smartphone or rival tablet, according to new industry research.

According to mobile ad company MoPub, advertisers prefer tablets over smartphones. The preference is because ads for tablets require little changes to move from the desktop or laptop. However, Madison Ave. has an especially soft spot for the iPad, which attracts consumers even more than the iPhone. In addition, ads on the iPad bring advertisers more revenue than those shown to Android tablet owners...